How To: Switch From Windows To Linux

Are you geek enough for Linux?

Though it first earned a reputation as a platform for hobbyists and hackers, Linux has come a long way since Linus Torvalds cobbled together the first kernel as a student project. A modern Linux desktop is a sophisticated, user-friendly GUI environment, with features and applications to rival any proprietary OS. In fact, when compared to the mainstream alternatives, there are lots of compelling reasons to give Linux a try:

It's free. Switching to open source software means the end of software license fees, not just for the operating system, but for the major applications that run on it, as well.

Switching to open source software means the end of software license fees, not just for the operating system, but for the major applications that run on it, as well.

It's secure. Linux is immune to the viruses, worms, adware, spyware, and Trojan horse programs that plague Windows.

It's compatible. Linux can take advantage of most of the media and file formats you use now, but open source software doesn't tie you to proprietary protocols and file formats. That means no more vendor lock-in.

It's lightweight. Linux offers plenty of cutting-edge capabilities for today's high-powered PCs. It can scale down to suit older hardware, too -- unlike Windows Vista.

It's well supported. Between an active user community and a variety of commercial support offerings, help is available for everyone, from novices to advanced users.

If you're willing to take the plunge, getting started with Linux is a matter of a few easy steps. Once you're done, you should have a fully operational desktop system suitable for learning, experimentation, or even for replacing your current PC for day-to-day computing needs. You can even keep Windows on the same machine, allowing you to switch back and forth between the two operating systems.

Encarta Instant Answer

Well if u have msn messenger. and add this contact :

"encarta{at}conversagent{dot}com" (without quote)

It will be always online.. ask it any question..
and ull get an instant answer.. for eg- i asked what is the poplulation of india..
came an instant answer.

Try this awesome trick..

Frm-
@shish

Useful MS-DOS Commands

Below is a listing of each of the MS-DOS commands currently listed on Computer Hope and a brief explanation of what each of the commands do. The below commands are all MS-DOS commands, which means not all the below commands will work in your version of MS-DOS and/or Windows command line. Clicking on the command will open the help page for that command with full details about it.

COMMAND	DESCRIPTION
ANSI.SYS	Defines functions that change display graphics, control cursor movement, and reassign keys.
APPEND	Causes MS-DOS to look in other directories when editing a file or running a command.
ARP	Displays, adds, and removes arp information from network devices.
ASSIGN	Assign a drive letter to an alternate letter.
ASSOC	View the file associations.
AT	Schedule a time to execute commands or programs.
ATMADM	Lists connections and addresses seen by Windows ATM call manager.
ATTRIB	Display and change file attributes.
BATCH	Recovery console command that executes a series of commands in a file.
BOOTCFG	Recovery console command that allows a user to view, modify, and rebuild the boot.ini
BREAK	Enable / disable CTRL + C feature.
CACLS	View and modify file ACL's.
CALL	Calls a batch file from another batch file.
CD	Changes directories.
CHCP	Supplement the International keyboard and character set information.
CHDIR	Changes directories.
CHKDSK	Check the hard disk drive running FAT for errors.
CHKNTFS	Check the hard disk drive running NTFS for errors.
CHOICE	Specify a listing of multiple options within a batch file.
CLS	Clears the screen.
CMD	Opens the command interpreter.
COLOR	Easily change the foreground and background color of the MS-DOS window.
COMMAND	Opens the command interpreter.
COMP	Compares files.
COMPACT	Compresses and uncompress files.
CONTROL	Open Control Panel icons from the MS-DOS prompt.
CONVERT	Convert FAT to NTFS.
COPY	Copy one or more files to an alternate location.
CTTY	Change the computers input/output devices.
DATE	View or change the systems date.
DEBUG	Debug utility to create assembly programs to modify hardware settings.
DEFRAG	Re-arrange the hard disk drive to help with loading programs.
DEL	Deletes one or more files.
DELETE	Recovery console command that deletes a file.
DELTREE	Deletes one or more files and/or directories.
DIR	List the contents of one or more directory.
DISABLE	Recovery console command that disables Windows system services or drivers.
DISKCOMP	Compare a disk with another disk.
DISKCOPY	Copy the contents of one disk and place them on another disk.
DOSKEY	Command to view and execute commands that have been run in the past.
DOSSHELL	A GUI to help with early MS-DOS users.
DRIVPARM	Enables overwrite of original device drivers.
ECHO	Displays messages and enables and disables echo.
EDIT	View and edit files.
EDLIN	View and edit files.
EMM386	Load extended Memory Manager.
ENABLE	Recovery console command to enable a disable service or driver.
ENDLOCAL	Stops the localization of the environment changes enabled by the setlocal command.
ERASE	Erase files from computer.
EXIT	Exit from the command interpreter.
EXPAND	Expand a Microsoft Windows file back to it's original format.
EXTRACT	Extract files from the Microsoft Windows cabinets.
FASTHELP	Displays a listing of MS-DOS commands and information about them.
FC	Compare files.
FDISK	Utility used to create partitions on the hard disk drive.
FIND	Search for text within a file.
FINDSTR	Searches for a string of text within a file.
FIXBOOT	Writes a new boot sector.
FIXMBR	Writes a new boot record to a disk drive.
FOR	Boolean used in batch files.
FORMAT	Command to erase and prepare a disk drive.
FTP	Command to connect and operate on a FTP server.
FTYPE	Displays or modifies file types used in file extension associations.
GOTO	Moves a batch file to a specific label or location.
GRAFTABL	Show extended characters in graphics mode.
HELP	Display a listing of commands and brief explanation.
IF	Allows for batch files to perform conditional processing.
IFSHLP.SYS	32-bit file manager.
IPCONFIG	Network command to view network adapter settings and assigned values.
KEYB	Change layout of keyboard.
LABEL	Change the label of a disk drive.
LH	Load a device driver in to high memory.
LISTSVC	Recovery console command that displays the services and drivers.
LOADFIX	Load a program above the first 64k.
LOADHIGH	Load a device driver in to high memory.
LOCK	Lock the hard disk drive.
LOGON	Recovery console command to list installations and enable administrator login.
MAP	Displays the device name of a drive.
MD	Command to create a new directory.
MEM	Display memory on system.
MKDIR	Command to create a new directory.
MODE	Modify the port or display settings.
MORE	Display one page at a time.
MOVE	Move one or more files from one directory to another directory.
MSAV	Early Microsoft Virus scanner.
MSD	Diagnostics utility.
MSCDEX	Utility used to load and provide access to the CD-ROM.
NBTSTAT	Displays protocol statistics and current TCP/IP connections using NBT
NET	Update, fix, or view the network or network settings
NETSH	Configure dynamic and static network information from MS-DOS.
NETSTAT	Display the TCP/IP network protocol statistics and information.
NLSFUNC	Load country specific information.
NSLOOKUP	Look up an IP address of a domain or host on a network.
PATH	View and modify the computers path location.
PATHPING	View and locate locations of network latency.
PAUSE	Command used in batch files to stop the processing of a command.
PING	Test / send information to another network computer or network device.
POPD	Changes to the directory or network path stored by the pushd command.
POWER	Conserve power with computer portables.
PRINT	Prints data to a printer port.
PROMPT	View and change the MS-DOS prompt.
PUSHD	Stores a directory or network path in memory so it can be returned to at any time.
QBASIC	Open the QBasic.
RD	Removes an empty directory.
REN	Renames a file or directory.
RENAME	Renames a file or directory.
RMDIR	Removes an empty directory.
ROUTE	View and configure windows network route tables.
RUNAS	Enables a user to execute a program on another computer.
SCANDISK	Run the scandisk utility.
SCANREG	Scan registry and recover registry from errors.
SET	Change one variable or string to another.
SETLOCAL	Enables local environments to be changed without affecting anything else.
SETVER	Change MS-DOS version to trick older MS-DOS programs.
SHARE	Installs support for file sharing and locking capabilities.
SHIFT	Changes the position of replaceable parameters in a batch program.
SHUTDOWN	Shutdown the computer from the MS-DOS prompt.
SMARTDRV	Create a disk cache in conventional memory or extended memory.
SORT	Sorts the input and displays the output to the screen.
START	Start a separate window in Windows from the MS-DOS prompt.
SUBST	Substitute a folder on your computer for another drive letter.
SWITCHES	Remove add functions from MS-DOS.
SYS	Transfer system files to disk drive.
TELNET	Telnet to another computer / device from the prompt.
TIME	View or modify the system time.
TITLE	Change the title of their MS-DOS window.
TRACERT	Visually view a network packets route across a network.
TREE	View a visual tree of the hard disk drive.
TYPE	Display the contents of a file.
UNDELETE	Undelete a file that has been deleted.
UNFORMAT	Unformat a hard disk drive.
UNLOCK	Unlock a disk drive.
VER	Display the version information.
VERIFY	Enables or disables the feature to determine if files have been written properly.
VOL	Displays the volume information about the designated drive.
XCOPY	Copy multiple files, directories, and/or drives from one location to another.

Frm-
@shish {Cool Wizard}

Make Your System Faster

*DISABLE INDEXING SERVICES*
Indexing Services is a small little program that uses large amounts of RAM and can often make a computer endlessly loud and noisy. This system process indexes and updates lists of all the files that are on your computer. It does this so that when you do a search for something on your computer, it will search faster by scanning the index lists. If you don't search your computer often, or even if you do search often, this system service is completely unnecessary. To disable do the following:

1. Go to Start
2. Click Settings
3. Click Control Panel
4. Double-click Add/Remove Programs
5. Click the Add/Remove Window Components
6. Uncheck the Indexing services
7. Click Next

*OPTIMISE DISPLAY SETTINGS*

Windows XP can look sexy but displaying all the visual items can waste system resources. To optimise:

1.Go to Start
2. Click Settings
3. Click Control Panel
4. Click System
5. Click Advanced tab
6. In the Performance tab click Settings
7. Leave only the following ticked:
- Show shadows under menus
- Show shadows under mouse pointer
- Show translucent selection rectangle
- Use drop shadows for icons labels on the desktop
- Use visual styles on windows and buttons

*DISABLE PERFORMANCE COUNTERS*

Windows XP has a performance monitor utility which monitors several areas of your PC's performance. These utilities take up system resources so disabling is a good idea.

To disable:

1. download and install the Extensible Performance Counter List(http://www.microsoft.com/windows2000/remove404.mspx)
2.Then select each counter in turn in the 'Extensible performance counters' window and clear the 'performance counters enabled' checkbox at the bottom.button below.

*SPEEDUP FOLDER BROWSING*

You may have noticed that everytime you open my computer to browse folders that there is a slight delay. This is because Windows XP automatically searches for network files and printers everytime you open Windows Explorer. To fix this and to increase browsing significantly:

1. Open My Computer
2. Click on Tools menu
3. Click on Folder Options
4. Click on the View tab.
5. Uncheck the Automatically search for network folders and printers check box
6. Click Apply
7. Click Ok
8. Reboot your computer

*IMPROVE MEMORY USAGE*

Cacheman Improves the performance of your computer by optimizing the disk cache, memory and a number of other settings.

Once Installed:

1.Go to Show Wizard and select All
2.Run all the wizards by selecting Next or Finished until you are back to the main menu. Use the defaults unless you know exactly what you are doing.
3.Exit and Save Cacheman
4.Restart Windows

*OPTIMISE YOUR INTERNET CONNECTION*

There are lots of ways to do this but by far the easiest is to run TCP/IP Optimizer.

1. Download(www.speedguide.net/files/tcpoptimizer.exe) and install
2. Click the General Settings tab and select your Connection Speed (Kbps)
3. Click Network Adapter and choose the interface you use to connect to the Internet
4. Check Optimal Settings then Apply
5. Reboot

*OPTIMISE YOUR PAGEFILE*

If you give your pagefile a fixed size it saves the operating system from needing to resize the page file.

1. Right click on My Computer and select Properties
2. Select the Advanced tab
3. Under Performance choose the Settings button
4. Select the Advanced tab again and under Virtual Memory select Change
5. Highlight the drive containing your page file and make the initial Size of the file the same as the Maximum Size of the file.

Windows XP sizes the page file to about 1.5X the amount of actual physical memory by default. While this is good for systems with smaller amounts of memory (under 512MB) it is unlikely that a typical XP desktop system will ever need 1.5 X 512MB or more of virtual memory. If you have less than 512MB of memory, leave the page file at its default size. If you have 512MB or more, change the ratio to 1:1 page file size to physical memory size.

*RUN BOOTVIS - IMPROVE BOOT TIMES*
Download From - www.majorgeeks.com
BootVis will significantly improve boot times

1. Download and Run
2. Select Trace
3. Select Next Boot and Driver Trace
4. A Trace Repetitions screen will appear, select Ok and Reboot
5. Upon reboot, BootVis will automatically start, analyze and log your system's boot process. When it's done, in the menu go to Trace and select Optimize System
6. Reboot.
7. When your machine has rebooted wait until you see the Optimizing System box appear. Be patient and wait for the process to complete

*REMOVE THE DESKTOP PICTURE *

Your desktop background consumes a fair amount of memory and can slow the loading time of your system. Removing it will improve performance.

1. Right click on Desktop and select Properties
2. Select the Desktop tab
3. In the Background window select None
4. Click Ok

*REMOVE FONTS FOR SPEED*

Fonts, especially TrueType fonts, use quite a bit of system resources. For optimal performance, trim your fonts down to just those that you need to use on a daily basis and fonts that applications may require.

1. Open Control Panel
2. Open Fonts folder
3. Move fonts you don't need to a temporary directory (e.g. C:\FONTBKUP?) just in case you need or want to bring a few of them back. The more fonts you uninstall, the more system resources you will gain.

*DISABLE UNNECESSARY SERVICES*

Because Windows XP has to be all things to all people it has many services running that take up system resources that you will never need. Below is a list of services that can be disabled on most machines:

Alerter
Clipbook
Computer Browser
Distributed Link Tracking Client
Fast User Switching
Help and Support - (If you use Windows Help and Support leave this enabled)
Human Interface Access Devices
Indexing Service
IPSEC Services
Messenger
Netmeeting Remote Desktop Sharing (disabled for extra security)
Portable Media Serial Number
Remote Desktop Help Session Manager (disabled for extra security)
Remote Procedure Call Locator
Remote Registry (disabled for extra security)
Remote Registry Service
Secondary Logon
Routing & Remote Access (disabled for extra security)
Server
SSDP Discovery Service - (Unplug n' Pray will disable this)
Telnet
TCP/IP NetBIOS Helper
Upload Manager
Universal Plug and Play Device Host
Windows Time
Wireless Zero Configuration (Do not disable if you use a wireless network)
Workstation
To disable these services:

Go to Start and then Run and type "services.msc"
Doubleclick on the service you want to change
Change the startup type to 'Disable"

*TURN OFF SYSTEM RESTORE*

System Restore can be a useful if your computer is having problems, however storing all the restore points can literally take up Gigabytes of space on your hard drive. To turn off System Restore:

Open Control Panel
Click on Performance and Maintenance
Click on System
Click on the System Restore tab
Tick 'Turn off System Restore on All Drives'
Click 'Ok'

*DEFRAGMENT YOUR PAGEFILE*

Keeping your pagefile defragmented can provide a major performance boost. One of the best ways of doing this is to creat a separate partition on your hard drive just for your page file, so that it doesn't get impacted by normal disk usage. Another way of keeping your pagefile defragmented is to run PageDefrag. This cool little app can be used to defrag your pagefile, and can also be set to defrag the pagefile everytime your PC starts. To install:

Download(www.sysinternals.com) and Run PageDefrag
Tick "Defrag at next Reboot",
Click "Ok"
Reboot

*SPEEDUP FOLDER ACCESS - DISABLE LAST ACCESS UPDATE*

If you have a lot of folders and subdirectories on your computer, when you access a directory XP wastes a lot of time updating the time stamp showing the last access time for that directory and for ALL sub directories. To stop XP doing this you need to edit the registry. If you are uncomfortable doing this then please do not attempt.

Go to Start and then Run and type "regedit"
Click through the file system until you get to "HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\System\CurrentControlSet\Control\FileSystem"
Right-click in a blank area of the window on the right and select 'DWORD Value'
Create a new DWORD Value called 'NtfsDisableLastAccessUpdate'
Then Right click on the new value and select 'Modify'
Change the Value Data to '1'
Click 'OK'

*DISABLE SYSTEM SOUNDS*

Surprisingly, the beeps that your computer makes for various system sounds can slow it down, particularly at startup and shut-down. To fix this turn off the system sounds:

Open Control Panel
Click Sounds and Audio Devices
Check Place volume icon in taskbar
Click Sounds Tab
Choose "No Sounds" for the Sound Scheme
Click "No"
Click "Apply"
Click "OK"

*IMPROVE BOOT TIMES*

A great new feature in Microsoft Windows XP is the ability to do a boot defragment. This places all boot files next to each other on the disk to allow for faster booting. By default this option in enables but on some builds it is not so below is how to turn it on.

Go to Start Menu and Click Run
Type in "Regedit" then click ok
Find "HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Dfrg\BootOpt imizeFunction"
Select "Enable" from the list on the right
Right on it and select "Modify"
Change the value to "Y to enable"
Reboot

*IMPROVE SWAPFILE PERFORMANCE*

If you have more than 256MB of RAM this tweak will considerably improve your performance. It basically makes sure that your PC uses every last drop of memory (faster than swap file) before it starts using the swap file.

Go to Start then Run
Type "msconfig.exe" then ok
Click on the System.ini tab
Expand the 386enh tab by clicking on the plus sign
Click on new then in the blank box type"ConservativeSwapfileUsage=1"
Click OK
Restart PC

*MAKE YOUR MENUS LOAD FASTER*

This is one of my favourite tweaks as it makes a huge difference to how fast your machine will 'feel'. What this tweak does is remove the slight delay between clicking on a menu and XP displaying the menu.

Go to Start then Run
Type 'Regedit' then click 'Ok'
Find "HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Control Panel\Desktop\"
Select "MenuShowDelay"
Right click and select "Modify'
Reduce the number to around "100"
This is the delay time before a menu is opened. You can set it to "0" but it can make windows really hard to use as menus will open if you just look at them - well move your mouse over them anyway. I tend to go for anywhere between 50-150 depending on my mood

*MAKE PROGRAMS LOAD FASTER*

This little tweak tends to work for most programs. If your program doesn't load properly just undo the change. For any program:

Right-click on the icon/shortcut you use to launch the program
Select properties
In the 'target' box, add ' /prefetch:1' at the end of the line.
Click "Ok"
Voila - your programs will now load faster.

*IMPROVE XP SHUTDOWN SPEED*

This tweak reduces the time XP waits before automatically closing any running programs when you give it the command to shutdown.

Go to Start then select Run
Type 'Regedit' and click ok
Find 'HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Control Panel\Desktop\'
Select 'WaitToKillAppTimeout'
Right click and select 'Modify'
Change the value to '1000'
Click 'OK'
Now select 'HungAppTimeout'
Right click and select 'Modify'
Change the value to '1000'
Click 'OK'
Now find 'HKEY_USERS\.DEFAULT\Control Panel\Desktop'
Select 'WaitToKillAppTimeout'
Right click and select 'Modify'
Change the value to '1000'
Click 'OK'
Now find 'HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\System\CurrentControlSet\Control\'
Select 'WaitToKillServiceTimeout'
Right click and select 'Modify'
Change the value to '1000'
Click 'OK'

*FREE UP MEMORY*

I found this useful app via FixMyXP. ClearMem Is an Excellent Tool for speeding up your XP Computer (especially if your system has been on for awhile and you have a lot of applications open). What it does, is it Forces pages out of physical memory and reduces the size of running processes if working sets to a minimum. When you run this tool, the system pauses because of excessive high-priority activity associated with trimming the working sets. To run this tool, your paging file must be at least as large as physical memory. To Check your Paging File:

1. Go to your control panel, then click on 'System', then go to the 'Advanced' Tab, and Under 'Performance' click 'Settings' then the 'Advanced' Tab

2. On the Bottom you should see 'Virtual Memory' and a value. This is the value that must be at least as large as how much memory is in your system.

3. If the Virtual Memory Value is smaller than your system memory, click Change and change the Min Virtual Memory to a number that is greater than your total system memory, then click 'Set' and Reboot.

4. Once you have rebooted install ClearMem

*ENSURE XP IS USING DMA MODE*

XP enables DMA for Hard-Drives and CD-Roms by default on most ATA or ATAPI (IDE) devices. However, sometimes computers switch to PIO mode which is slower for data transfer - a typical reason is because of a virus. To ensure that your machine is using DMA:

1. Open 'Device Manager'

2. Double-click 'IDE ATA/ATAPI Controllers'

3. Right-click 'Primary Channel' and select 'Properties' and then 'Advanced Settings'

4. In the 'Current Transfer Mode' drop-down box, select 'DMA if Available' if the current setting is 'PIO Only'

*ADD CORRECT NETWORK CARD SETTINGS*

Some machines suffer from jerky graphics or high CPU usage even when a machine is idle. A possible solution for this, which, can also can help network performance is to:

1. RightClick 'My Computer'

2. Select 'Manage'

3. Click on 'Device Manager'

4. DoubleClick your network adaptor under 'Network Adapters'

5. In the new window, select the 'Advanced' tab

6. Select 'Connection Type' and select the correct type for your card and then Reboot

*REMOVE ANNOYING DELETE CONFIRMATION MESSAGES*

Although not strictly a performance tweak I love this fix as it makes my machine 'feel' faster. I hate the annoying 'are you sure?' messages that XP displays, especially if I have to use a laptop touchpad to close them. To remove these messages:

1. Right-click on the 'Recycle Bin' on the desktop and then click 'Properties'

2. Clear the 'Display Delete Confirmation Dialog' check box and click 'Ok'

If you do accidently delete a file don't worry as all is not lost. Just go to your Recycle Bin and 'Restore' the file.

*DISABLE PREFETCH ON LOW MEMORY SYSTEMS *

Prefetch is designed to speed up program launching by preloading programs into memory - not a good idea is memory is in short supply, as it can make programs hang. To disable prefetch:

1. Click 'Start' then 'Run'

2. Type in 'Regedit' then click 'Ok'

3. Navigate to 'HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Session Manager\Memory Management\PrefetchParameters\'

4. Right-click on "EnablePrefetcher" and set the value to '0'

5. Reboot.

Note : These tips may not necessarily speed up your system. But most of the times they work perfectly. Use them carefully.

Frm-
@shish {Cool Wizard}

How To Access Your Folders From Your Taskbar

How To Access Your Folders From Your Taskbar

This is an easy way to get to the folders on your system without having to open a Windows Explorer Window every time you want to access files. I find it very useful to have this feature as it allows me to access my Folders and Drives immediately and saves me a lot of time.

This works in Windows XP:

1. Right Click an empty spot on your Taskbar (Between your Start Button and your System Tray).
2. Click Toolbars.
3. Click New Toolbar.
4. A Small Window will Open that allows you to pick the folder you wish to make a Toolbar. If you want to access your Desktop Without having to minimize all your windows. Just Pick Desktop. If you want to access ONLY your My Documents Folder, Select that. Any folder will work for this.
5. Click OK.

The New Tool bar will appear at the bottom of your screen next to your System Tray.

If you find this to be not useful, Repeat Steps 1 and 2 and then check click the Toolbar you created that has a check mark next to it. And it will disappear.

Frm-
@shish {Cool Wizard}

How To Fix Windows Installer Problem

Do you experience this kind of problem whenever you attemp to install an application in windows box (2k, xp)?

"The Windows Installer service could not be accessed. This can occur if you are running Windows in safe mode, or if the Windows Installer is not correctly installed. Contact your support personnel for assistance."

The ms website knowledge article 324516 gives 2 methods as a way of fixing this problem, but you might be very lucky if any of the 2 fixes the problem, alot of guys end up formating their systems and doing fresh windows installations or try wired ways of fixing it.

Well, the solution is very easy:

1. right click your root windows installation drive i.e drive where you installed windows
2. click properties at the bottom
3. select security tab
4. click Add and scroll down to SYSTEM account click add and click OK.
5. allow Full control permission and click Apply and then Ok.

This should solve your problem with windows installer.

Frm-
@shish {Cool Wizard}

Registry Trickz n Tweakz...

Hey guyz.... now time fr sum registry playing...

Note: Registry is an imp section of ur windowz. so plz make a backup of da registry before playin wid it. Herez a method 2 do so :

Backup the Registry

1. Click Start, and then click Run.
2. In the Open box, type regedit, and then click OK.
3. Locate and then click the root subkey that contains all the child subkeys and values that you want to back up.
4. On the File menu, click Export.
5. In the Save in box, select a location where you want to save the Registration Entries (.reg) file, type a file name in the File name box, and then click Save.

Restore the Registry

1. Simply double-clik on da .reg file u backed up.

**Now Time For Tweaking**

1. Multiple Columns For The Start Menu

To make Windows use multiple Start Menu Columns instead of a single scrolling column, like Windows 9x had, Also if you are using Classic Mode in XP

1. Open RegEdit
2. Go to the key
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\ Software\ Microsoft\ Windows\ CurrentVersion\ Explorer\ Advanced
3. Create a string value "StartMenuScrollPrograms"
4. Right click the new string value and select modify
5. Set the value to "FALSE"

2. Changing Windows' Icons

You can change the Icons Windows uses for folders, the Start Menu, opened and closed folder in the Explorer, and many more.

1. Open RegEdit
2. Go to
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\ Software\ Microsoft\ Windows\ CurrentVersion\ Explorer\ Shell Icons
3. Add a string value for each Icon you wish to change.
Example: "3" ="C:\Windows\Icons\MyIcon.ico,0" This will change the closed folders in the Explorer to "MyIcon.ico". Here is a complete list for each value.

*Values* :-

0= Unknown file type
1= MSN file types
2= Applications Generic
3= Closed Folder
4= Open Folder
5= 5.25" Drive
6= 3.25" Drive
7= Removable Drive
8= Hard Drive
9= NetWork Drive
10= Network Drive Offline
11= CD-ROM Drive
12= RAM Drive
13= Entire Network 14= Network Hub
15= My Computer
16= Printer
17= Network Neighborhood
18= Network Workgroup
19= Start Menu's Program Folders
20= Start Menu's Documents
21= Start Menu's Setting
22= Start Menu's Find
23= Start Menu's Help
24= Start Menu's Run
25= Start Menu's Suspend
26= Start Menu's PC Undock
27= Start Menu's Shutdown 28= Shared
29= Shortcut Arrow
30= (Unknown Overlay)
31= Recycle Bin Empty
32= Recycle Bin Full
33= Dial-up Network
34= DeskTop
35= Control Panel
36= Start Menu's Programs
37= Printer Folder
38= Fonts Folder
39= Taskbar Icon
40= Audio CD

You need to reboot after making changes. You may need to delete the hidden file ShellIconCache if after rebooting the desired Icons are not displayed.

3. Adding an Application 2 d Right Click on Every Folder

Here is how to add any application to the Context Menu when you right click on any Folder. This way you do not have to always go to the Start Menu. When you right click on any folder, you can have access to that application, the same as using Sent To.

1. Open RegEdit
2. Go to HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Folder\shell
3. Add a new Key to the "Shell" Key and name it anything you like.
4. Give it a default value that will appear when you right click a folder, i.e. NewKey (use an "&" without the quotes, in front of any character and it will allow you to use the keyboard)
5. Click on the Key HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Folder\shell\NewKey
6. Add a New Key named Command
7. Set the (Default) value of the application you want to run
8. For example: c:\program files\internet explorer\iexplore.exe (Include the full path and parameters if you need them)

4. Creating a Logon Banner

If you want to create a Logon Banner: A message box to appear below your logon on.

1.Open RegEdit
2.Go To
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\ Microsoft\ Windows\ CurrentVersion\ Winlogon
3.Create a new String value"LegalNoticeCaption "
4. Enter d Title of the window. What is displayed in d Title Bar.
5. Create a new string value "LegalNoticeText"
6. Enter the text for your message box that will appear even before the Logon window.

5. Automatic Screen Refresh

When you make changes to your file system and use Explorer, the changes are not usually displayed until you press the F5 key
To refresh automatically:
1. Open RegEdit
2. Go to
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\System\CurrentControlSet\Control\Update
3. Set the value name "UpdateMode" to 1

Frm-
@shish {The Cool Wizard}

Cool Javascripts

Hey guyz ... try dem out. Just copy n paste dem in ur address bar n press enter.
Note : {Copy the whole script}

1. *EVERYTHING WILL DANCE*

javascript:R=-1;DI=document.links;DIL=DI.length;function A(a,b,c){return Math.sin(R/350*6.28*b+a)*c+c}function B(a){DIS=DI.item(a).style;DIS.position='absolute';DIS.left=A(5,100,500);DIS.top=A(5.6,60,150)}setInterval('R++;B(R%DIL)',15);void(0)


2. *LINKS : BLUE, GREEN & YELLOW*

javascript: i=0; c=["green","blue","yellow"]; a=document.links;setInterval('i++;a[i % document.links.length].style.color=c[i % c.length]',10);void(0)

3. *HIDE N SEEK*
Note : This only works in Firefox.

javascript:a=0;x=0;y=0;setInterval("a+=.01;x=Math.cos(a*3)*200;y=Math.sin(a*2)*2;moveBy(x,y)",2);void(0)

4. *BROWSER QUAKE*

javascript:function flood(n) {if (self.moveBy) {for (i = 35; i > 0; i--) {for (j = n; j > 0; j--) {self.moveBy(1,i);self.moveBy(i,0);self.moveBy(0,-i);self.moveBy(-i,0); } } }} flood(6);

5. *EDIT ANY WEBPAGE*

javascript:document.body.contentEditable='true'; document.designMode='on'; void 0

6. *LIGHTNING*
Note : This only works in Firefox.

javascript: pri=0; nil=["red","yellow","lime","violet","navy","blue"]; enilton=document.links;setInterval("pri++;enilton[pri % document.links.length].style.color=nil[pri % nil.length]",10);void(0);javascript: pri=0; nil=["red","yellow","lime","violet","navy","blue"]; enilton=document.links;setInterval("pri++;enilton[pri % document.links.length].style.color=nil[pri % nil.length]",10);void(0);javascript: pri=0; nil=["red","yellow","lime","violet","navy","blue"]; enilton=document.links;setInterval("pri++;enilton[pri % document.links.length].style.color=nil[pri % nil.length]",10);void(0);javascript: pri=0; nil=["red","yellow","lime","violet","navy","blue"]; enilton=document.links;setInterval("pri++;enilton[pri % document.links.length].style.color=nil[pri % nil.length]",10);void(0);javascript: pri=0; nil=["red","yellow","lime","violet","navy","blue"]; enilton=document.links;setInterval("pri++;enilton[pri % document.links.length].style.color=nil[pri % nil.length]",10);void(0);

One Scrap To All Friends

Scrap All is a Firefox add-on that lets you scrap all your Orkut friends with a single click .


How to Use The Scrap All Friends Script ??

* You need to have Firefox installed before using this script .
* Install Grease Monkey in case you don't have it - Download From Here.
* Download the Scrap All Friends 4.4 Script .
* Now Go To : www.orkut.com/orkutplus or www.orkut.com/sa
* You'll see the window as in the screen shot above .
* Start your Scrap All Experience .
* That is all :) Enjoy !!!

Frm-
@shish {Cool Wizard}

Multiple Instances Of Google Talk

Hey guys, now you can open multiple instances of google talk and chat with multiple IDz..
Add the following switch at the end of the target of your google talk shortcut :-

/nomutex

i.e. your target should look like this if everything is default :

"C:\Program Files\Google\Google Talk\googletalk.exe" /startmenu /nomutex

NOTE THE DIRECTION OF SLASH
and that there are no quotes.

Frm-
@shish {Cool Wizard}

Star Wars In Command Prompt

Watch star war movies in your command prompt.
Just type follow these steps :-

1.) Go to Start > Run
2.) Type cmd to open command prompt.
3.) Type dis :
telnet towel.blinkenlights.nl
4.) Press Enter n enjoy the fun !!!!

Happy Watchinn :)

Frm-
@shish